Research Ireland Centre for Advanced Materials and BioEngineering Research
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3 AMBER Researchers have received funding through the Frontiers for the Future Programme. Professor Ciara Murphy (Pictured) of RCSI receives funding for 3D printed technologies and therapeutic biomaterials to support spinal fractures. Professor Colm O’Dwyer of UCC receives funding for 3D printed rechargeable batteries from sustainable materials which can be made into various shapes and are recyclable. Professor Plamen Stamenov of TCD receives funding for Machine Learning hardware that enhances interconnectivity (mimicking the human brain).
Announcing the awards, Minister Lawless said: “We are investing in cutting-edge, curiosity-driven research, and empowering individual researchers to progress bold ideas that can lead to groundbreaking discoveries. These awards demonstrate our dedication to building a diverse and inclusive research community that delivers impact for our society and economy. I look forward to seeing the development and outputs of these projects over the coming years.”
| Lead Researcher | Lead Researcher HEI | Lay Summary | Value of Award (including overheads) |
| Ciara Murphy | RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences | Osteoporosis can often cause fractures in the vertebra of the spine. Treatment for these fractures typically involves cement injections which are permanent and often associated with a poorer quality of life. This project aims to develop a new technology to repair vertebral bone and restore functional health to the spine. We will develop a 3D-printed stent to support the fracture bone during healing but degrade over time, and an injectable biomaterial with therapeutic properties to drive bone regeneration and healing. We will then characterise and assess the efficacy of this technology to validate its feasibility for patient use. | €809,771 |
| Colm O’Dwyer | UCC | Rechargeable batteries are limited to a few shapes, and devices must accommodate those shapes. They are also heavier than they need to be and every part of the battery cannot be easily recycled, certainly not in a single step. This project will use sustainable materials to 3D print rechargeable batteries in any shape so they match the device design and function from the get-go, rather than the other way round. And when the batteries are no longer needed, the outer casings and inner battery materials can be completely recycled and recovered for reuse. | €778,147 |
| Plamen Stamenov | TCD | Algorithmic language-based machine learning (ML) has taken the world by storm but so-far falls short of achieving the freedom of conceptional, deep-thinking and probabilistic hypothesis generation unconstrained by guided learning. In order to shine through this current level of opaqueness, inherent to classical ML, a new level of hardware, with a drastically-enhanced degree of interconnectivity is required (mimicking the human brain), also eliminating the bottlenecks associated with energy-intensive, discrete and volatile memory, and which would support high-speed learning by reinforcement and deduction, without resorting to effective emulation in software. METEOR’s aim is to deliver a magneto-optical prototype answering this need. | €789,234 |
Dr Diarmuid O’Brien, CEO of Research Ireland, commented: “Research Ireland’s Frontiers for the Future Programme has, at its core, the exploration of high-risk, high-reward ideas, and the building of collaborative teams that produce excellent research. We are proud to be partnering with Children’s Health Foundation, Breakthrough Cancer Research, and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, and supporting 66 PhD students, 47 postdoctoral researchers, and 13 other research positions.”
Image: Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, James Lawless TD has today (Friday, 14th November) announced funding of €34.5million for scientific research under the Research Ireland Frontiers for the Future Programme. Pictured at the announcement in RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences were (left-right): Dr Ciara Murphy, Department of Anatomy and Regenerative Medicine (awardee) and Minister Lawless. Dr Murphy’s osteoporosis-focussed project aims to develop a new technology to repair vertebral bone and restore functional health to the spine. Photo: Finbarr O’Rourke.
AMBER has a strong emphasis on collaboration. Central to AMBER’s research remit are collaborative projects performed with industry partners, and working with academic, industry and wider stakeholder on international and national research programmes.
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